The woman nodded in response as Adam looked through the pile of books she had given him. After getting a few more in line with the older Druid's recommendations, the man left the library and headed for his next destination. Fiona had been very helpful, judging by the fact that the red-eyed nature magic user was walking towards the hotel using both of his hands to carry his newfound literature. A recent snippet of a conversation played out in his head as he did so.

"When should I return these by?" Adam had asked, having no clue how libraries handled late books in Mytheria. 

"Oh, whenever you can. If you want. Glee vouched for you, so you're good." Even the younger Druid, oblivious as he could be around women at times, could tell the librarian had some sort of fangirl crush on the half-orc.

Not that he had anything against her, but Fiona's feelings weren't why he was thinking about that. The fact was that Glee seemed to be quite fond of him, which was quite a contrast from how the red-eyed man felt about himself. Maybe it was that Glee didn't know about what had happened at the Hillocks, though he probably had been in similar (or worse) situations with his team. It was something to think about, along with-

The Mended Drum appeared before his eyes though, interrupting his thoughts and changing them to "how am I going to open this door while carrying all these books?" Just then, a helpful employee opened the door from the inside; she seemed to be an ordinary human woman, a little surprising after seeing orcs and elves everywhere. "How can I-oh, you checked in last night. Can I help you with those?" 

Adam nodded, asking her to help with the doors while he carried the books to his room. It was more the logistics of moving the items that was the problem, not their weight. Even though she wasn't out of shape, lifting Lillianna to Valheim the day before had made this seem much easier in retrospect.

After the literature was safe in his room, the Druid thanked the girl who went back to her normal work. He wondered what he should do next before his stomach decided to make that decision for him, grumbling to indicate that he should probably get something to eat.

Food sounded like a good idea, yes.

Walking around the Bazaar with Lillianna and Fenna was more than enough for MacKensie to free herself of all weight and worry. That feeling of being with female friends and excitedly searching for clothes and accessories was precisely the tonic she'd needed today. A bit of 'Retail Therapy.'

As lunchtime neared she'd already found herself a beautiful golden comb and hand mirror to match, underwear, perfume, earrings and a necklace, incense for her room, some beautiful brown heeled sandals, a basic black hairband and some smaller elastic hair bands too, and a purse... All of this while chatting endlessly with Fenna and Lillianna about a whole load of nothing, and searching out bargains with inhuman precision.

Some adventurers were gifted with the Fire Domain. Some Light. Some Water. MacKensie's Domain was Retail.

She found herself at a herbalists stall, carrying out a conversation about facial creams with the shopkeeper and trying out small samples on herself and even dragging Fenna into it.

"This one feels very moisturizing," she told the older woman. "Hold still." And without even asking permission, she was rubbing a little of the cream on the other dutchwoman's cheekbone. "So nice, is it not?"

Later, they'd found themselves in a high-end clothing store, where, after flashing a little gold, they were treated with drinks and an extremely helpful assistant while they tried on clothes.

"Lillianna, you look fabulous!"

MacKensie had already bought an outfit and had it bagged but she was now trying on a beautiful olive tunic that showed off her neck and shoulders. The satin olive garb was embroidered with an elegant gold pattern across the top and hung down to her hips, tightened by a black sash-belt at her waist. The outfit was finished off with black pants and knee-high boots.

"I will wear this out of the shop, thank you," she told the assistant, who graciously bagged up her Ranger gear for her. "Fenna, have you decided on anything yet?" MacKensie asked, a flute of champagne in her hand. She gave herself one last look in the mirror, then went to sit down.

After asking around in the commercial district, Zell was directed to the most prestigious Arcane Blacksmith in the city - Gildor Hammerfist. The shop was located on the edge of the Bazaar, by the water, and had it's own front yard complete with a fully stocked forge. Gildor however was inside the shop, where a plethora of weapons and armour of high quality filled the racks. shelves and dummies. Gildor Hammerfist wasn't too tall, but an incredibly heavy-set man, with hands like shovels, a jaw and chin like a concrete block, and a messy mop of jet black hair. His skin was light brown and his green apron covered his working-man's clothes. Rolled up shirt sleeves showed his massive, hairy forearms as he appraised the sword stolen from the metal ninja.

Zell had his hands on a shiny shortsword. He tested it's balance, then looked down the length of the blade to make sure it was straight. The craftmenship was of a very high standard. When Gildor started talking, Zell put the shortsword back and went over.

"The alloy is orichalcum and a dark-iron known as Earthbone," said the deep-voiced blacksmith. "A rare blade. Strong."

"Oh yeah?" Zell chimed in. "Orichalcum n Earthbone... That'll be drow-made then?"

"Mmm," Gildor agreed. He didn't look too pleased.

"What's with the sour face - something wrong with that?" Zell asked.

"As if you don't know," Gildor said. Actually, Zell didn't know whatever it was that had bothered the blacksmith. He knew a lot about the swords of this world but nothing about the makers of them. "The dark elves are a nasty lot. Not bad craftsmen, aye, but I don't usually mess with wares from the Underdark. Especially enchanted wares."

Zell leaned in and looked at the ninja's sword, rubbing his chin. The black steel gleamed a hint of purple. It did look nice... but ominous too. "Don't worry," Zell assured. "It'll be out of your hands soon enough. Just do this 'Identify' thing you were talking about and I'll be on my way."

Gildor seemed to weigh his options for a few moments before he finally looked at Zell and said, "Fine." The blacksmith cast an Identify spell on the sword, but nothing happened. "It's a high level enchantment. A regular Identification spell isn't gonna cut it." He snorted a breath and then looked at the Englishman. "That's gonna cost extra."

Zell tilted his head in concession so Gildor proceeded to retrieve a rather large magnifying glass the size of a tennis racket. The blacksmith cast a spell on the magnifying glass and then went on to chant some magical words for a high-level Identification spell. Zell watched, mildly interested in the magic but more anticipating what the actual result would be. If this sword was so powerful that it required high-level magic just to figure out what it could do, then Zell would be very happy to wield it. The magnifying glass glowed brightly and it looked like Gildor was reading something through the glass. It took about half a minute before the glow disappeared and Gildor put the magnifying glass down. He did not look happy at all.

"Well?" Zell asked, eager to hear.

"The sword will enchance any melee fighters defensive strength for parrying attacks. It will also increase your damage - including damage on any class abilities you might have. But it also comes with a Star-Tier Power: Once per day, the sword will ignore all armour and resistance for a single strike, so long as the wielder invokes the name of the sword." Gildor deleayed, unsure he even wanted to say the words. Zell was waiting with baited breath. "'Take Vor, Baphomet.'"

"'Take Vor... Baphomet'," Zell repeated. He thought about it for a second. "Sounds a bit errr... demonic... don't you think?"

Gildor bowed his head in leui of agreement. "That's because it is." A heavy silence fell on the two. Each of them glanced at the sword and back at eachother. Neither looked particularly scared. But Zell look unsure of himself. And Gildor looked annoyed he'd been dragged into this. "The sword is strengthened with Source of the Dark Domain. If I was you, I'd report this to the Citadel..." Zell was already reaching for his money. "...hand it in. Could be illegal. Most definitely trouble."

Zell started putting gold pieces onto the counter, one at a time in a steady and purposeful pace. "I'll be the judge of that, eh." He continued to place gold pieces down. "How much for your trouble, and your silence on this matter?" He kept placing gold pieces down, until Gildor raised a hand. "Ppreciate it, Gildor. You're a good man. Now I'll be out of your hair just as soon as I get a scabbard that will fit the weapon. Oh and can I take a look at your bucklers and kite shields, my mate?"

The city was full of people of different backgrounds and origins and merchants were trying to make a profit of adventurers who had cashed in their contracts. Fenna wasn't one to spend her money easily and she politely declined many of the merchants who approached her to show some jewellery they were certain would look good on her or perfumes from far-away countries she had never even heard of. While Sil had flown above their heads for a bit, at one point she left them to hunt outside the city walls.

It didn't take long before MacKensie showed her shopping skills and she was impressed. While she knew a thing or two about shopping for clothes, MacKensie took it to the next level. Fenna had made a mental list of what she thought she'd need for their journey ahead and marked things off as she purchased them. A wooden comb and a toothbrushing set, which consisted of a wooden stick with some lovely carvings that had one frayed end and a pointy end, and some kind of cleaning powder that had a minty smell to it. A silver whistle. Extra undergarments to wear under her leather armour and a woollen sleeveless vest she could wear when it was cold. Three hairbands found their way into her bag as well, one darkgreen with golden embroidery, one plain orange, and one light green with a darkgreen motive.

She made a note of where the food vendors were so she could stock up on supplies before they would leave to fulfil their contract as she chatted with MacKensie and Lilliana.

At a herbalist stall she found herself being dragged into it by MacKensie and she had to admit the creme was good. She bought some for herself and a piece of soap that smelled like lavender.

Finally, they made their way to a high-end clothing store and Fenna browsed the wares as she pondered how much she was willing to pay for clothes she could wear in the city but were definitely not practical for travel. The leather armour was not fashionable, but it was surprisingly comfortable as if it was made to fit her. Since she had woken up in this outfit, that made sense.
"Almost," Fenna said to MacKensie as she compared two skirts of a fabric resembling cotton. She smiled when she glanced towards her female companion and how comfortable she was in the shop. Then she turned to find Lilliana to see how she was doing.

Going with the theme of her earlier purchases, she settled for a dark green long-sleeved vest made of a velvet-like material with gold buttons, and a matching ankle-long skirt with some golden embroidery along the edges. The shop assistant assured her the material was crease-friendly, so it would be suitable to be transported in a bag like most adventurers carried.

She examined herself in the mirror and nodded to herself, this outfit would do. "I think I will carry this out of the shop as well," she decided. "Is it possible to have my armour sent to the inn I stay?"
The shop assistant told her that was possible as she could fetch an errand boy or girl to do that and went ahead to ask MacKensie and Lillina if they too wished for their current clothes to be brought to the inn.

Without the weight of her leather armour, that was a constant reminder of the situation they were in, she started to relax more. She accepted the bubbly drink when it was offered and sipped from it. Not quite the same as real French champagne, but it was close enough.

Once Lilliana was ready they would set out again, but for now Fenna enjoyed the moment of soft cushions to sit in while sipping her drink.

James cracked a grin at Lucy's stories of young Barracker, they were surprisingly... 'wholesome' was the word he wanted to use but taking into account that they wanted to 'give a lift' to some orcs perhaps it was not the most appropriate word, still, he could almost imagine tall and broody by his side and his little gaggle of friends asking those same questions.

"Ya know? It is reassuring that you vouch for him so much, we already had accepted him but getting the guild master's approval is a hell of a recommendation." Turning towards his quiet companion he extended a hand "Well Barracker, welcome officially to Second Chance, hope you love your stay" Looking once more at the Guild Master he bid his goodbyes "Welp, thanks for everything Lucy, I will get our of your hair now, see you later"

“So, what's the next mission?”

"Right you still don't know" He mulled the words on his mind for a second "We are trying to rank up to Silver as quick as possible so we were given a choice between several options, we after careful instrospection we setled on a Gold contract, we leave in a couple of days towards the Temple of Hades to kill the Greater Wraith thas has nested there so if you need to make any preparations I suggest you use these days to do it" Saying so he decided to say something semisirius for once, laying a hand agaisnt the taller man's shoulder he started "Thank you for joining us Barracker, truthfully I feel more at ease knowing we have another able person on the party" He patted the other man a few times before retracting his hand "Well I am going back to The Mended Drum if you wanna meet the party or just hang with us you know where to find us"

Satisfied with his interpersonal interaction he started walking towards the inn before a thought crossed his mind, he... had forgotten to tell Barracker about the fact that they were from another world which was a HUUGEEE oversight if he was being honest, best to take care of that before doing anything else.

Stopping his walk he turned his torso towards the Vampiric Paladin "Oh right, another tiny, almost insignificant detail I forgot to add... We Second Chance come from another world" He waited for barely a second before giving a wave with the hand and resuming his walk "Till later dude!"

Nailed it.



Returning towards The Mended Drum might not have been the most Logistical sound decision but in his defense the journey to the Guild and back was halfway through the city so he felt justified in taking a breather on a familiar location before setting off again.

Entering the establishment he noticed a distinct lack of his party members.

Shrugging his shoulders he went to Frederick the innkeeper and sorted his meal, before long he was seated and about to gulf down a hearty mix of eggs and bread with some meat he guessed was beef thrown in. The only thing stopping him was the figure of Adam going coming down the stairs, this was a prime opportunity to talk with the younger man, the second person he really need to talk more to (Fenna was the first) "Hey Adam! Here! Wanna join?"

Adam had kept one book on his person as he walked downstairs. He had planned on finding a place with a cheap meal and reading; the man didn't know if he would even be in Second Chance after everything that happened, so it was smart to be frugal. Not that he was really a big spender anyway; his father's degree was in accounting and the parental figure had passed on at least a little knowledge of numbers to his children. The plan changed though, thanks to five words from the team's leader.

"Hey Adam! Here! Wanna join?"

The truth was, Adam wanted to be alone as he felt he didn't deserve to talk to anyone on his team at that moment, but he felt ignoring James would be rude. He forced himself to smile and nodded, joining the Cleric at the table. At least now he'd know if he was still in the group. The Druid was about to speak when Frederick asked if he wanted anything. Not wanting to delay the inevitable, the younger man simply ordered what James was having. With that out of the way, Adam directed his attention to his (maybe nor for long) leader and politely spoke.

"What's going on?"

"We are trying to rank up to Silver as quick as possible so we were given a choice between several options, we after careful instrospection we setled on a Gold contract, we leave in a couple of days towards the Temple of Hades to kill the Greater Wraith thas has nested there so if you need to make any preparations I suggest you use these days to do it"

Barracker nodded, his eyebrows furrowed with scorn across his face. It was bad enough that the temple of the god he chose to serve had been desecrated, but worse was the amount of innocent lives that would have been lost, most likely due to someone doing something stupid or careless. “Very well James, I will use the time wisely.”

"Thank you for joining us Barracker, truthfully I feel more at ease knowing we have another able person on the party" James patted Barrackers shoulder a few times before retracting his hand

A smile crept on Barrackers face as he appreciated the sentiment and faith of his leader, but the smile disappeared after a mere moment, replaced by a firm expression of determination. “I will not let the party down.”

"Well I am going back to The Mended Drum if you wanna meet the party or just hang with us you know where to find us"

“I will be there at the end of the day, I have things to attend to.

As James started to walk off, Barracker looked away, about to don his mask. "Oh right, another tiny, almost insignificant detail I forgot to add…

Huh? Barracker paused.

We Second Chance come from another world"

Barracker was in shock at the clerics words, “What!? But h-”

"Till later dude!"

“Hey wait.” Barracker reached out a hand,but the cleric was gone, down the street. Barracker was left, his brain frazzled with confusion. But how in the world is that possible?

Realising he had been stood in the street for a good five minutes since James had left him, he donned his mask and made a move.



“Barracker! Barracker! Barracker!,” The three children sang his name in sync, as they ran and threw themselves into the kneeling paladins arms. Barracker greeted each kid by name and tussled their hair.

“Its good to see you guys,” he said. One of the boys, Eren, immediately jumped out of the embrace and ran behind the paladin to inspect the tower shield and claymore against the entrance of the orphanage. “Do not touch the sword,” he ordered with a warm tone, over his shoulder, as he took his mask and placed it on the girl, Isabella’s face. She wobbled off , holding the oversized face-covering on her head. The oldest boy, Tyrion, stepped back as Barracker addressed him. Even with the kids, he could not help speaking with a formal tone. “Are you looking after everyone okay?”

Tyrion saluted with a fist to the chest, always copying Barracker’s ways. The boy proceeded to give Barracker a full extensive report of how all the children were doing. It was probably too much information, but Barracker was always attentive. As the kid was finished, Barracker noticed one of the staff members appear in the background. He rose to his feet after thanking Tyrion and dismissing him in a mock military manner. He bowed his head at the orphanage's most loved and adored care worker.

“Good afternoon mother.”

She smiled with the beauty of Iris, “ Barracker my dear, welcome home.”

To say that this particular store was 'high-end' would be an understatement in the mage's mind. A vast one. Drinks, helpful assistants, trying on a fair number of clothes, everything just by flashing a 'bit of gold' at the door. It felt like she'd been sucked into a high-end world, speaking of, that was so richly decorated and fashionable that it sincerely boggled her mind a little bit. Dresses with full arm-length gloves, satin curtains that felt smoother than silk, mirrors that shone with enchanted glass without so much as a speck of dust or scratching on them, and that was just in the area for trying on clothes for pity's sake! Ice cold champagne in glasses that never seemed to get uncomfortable to hold yet whose contained drink never got anywhere away from the perfect level of chill and cold no matter how long they sat out. Likely had ordurves sitting nearby for anyone that got mildly invvonceniced by peckishness in here even...

Heck, ornate likely gold-leaf design on engraved borders were seemingly etched onto the borders of the walls for decorative and artistic purposes. Corners had partial-columns embedded into them as well, with gold flare and the faintest noticeable hint of silver trim, which seemed as grand as perhaps those of the ancient Parthenon were in the original building's heyday! There was even a small indoor fountain near the front, carved from smoothed marble with gold and silver trim, atop the center part of which was a statue was pretending to strump a harp and singing songs while the rest of the also gem-embedded (into different shapes no less in this regard) fountain looked like a totally paradisic island with carved features that almost seemed to come to life in front of her eyes. For pity's sake! She'd never been in a place such as this in terms of sheer decadence and royal grandeur save once or twice in her dreams back home. The most 'fancy' she'd seen had been a still rather nice little clothing store otherwise back home, which for a time she'd visited with her uncle's girlfriend and said girlfriend's two daughters, though compared to this place it might as well have been a shack made of dirt in the middle of the woods in the comparative sense.

...But despite all of this nearly flooring her more than any other place thus far in whatever new world this was, she had done her best to accomodate the desire of her compatriots to enter the establishment and try on clothes. Because if nothing else, she felt it deserved an honest try for the sake of those about her despite her own internal reactions to it all. That and...well...umm...maybe she was a bit excited as well to shop here as well, if she were to be honest about everything.

Another attendant had even seemingly gravitated toward her as she'd tried to look at some clothing, mostly as she'd nerbously tried to thumb through varied styles in some attempt to narrow something down to try. An eccentric short man, it seemed, who had a gem-like glint in his eyes but seemed to be a little bit shorter than a dwarf. He'd introduced himself as one 'Addelsby Laurentius Higginsbottom the Third', a fancy enough sounding name as it was, and while somewhat white-haired and older in the visible sense he'd softened when talking to her and tried to make her less nervous and more comfortable along the way. He'd then politely complimented her looks, thankfully as well in a non-creepy sort of way, and had invited her to try some designs on for him in the process as she thought about something to try.

At first had come a few lesser dresses and tunics and so forth, mostly involving golds and silvers and whites and lighter colors, before transferring to darker colors and even a sterotype 'little black dress' of sorts as the gnome had asked her questions and brought items to her to try after observing her reactions and getting some general verbal feedback. All the while he'd made complimants, talked to one or two others working there at certain intervals, and occasionally grabbed some spectacles and jotted down some notes on paper before returning to her once more. Yet something seemed to be eating away at the man's mind more and more as they did so, and thus after the small gnome had taken a second to think he had asked her to try something 'well outside the usual range, a unique piece even, for his sake', and she'd tentatively agreed.

...To say what he brought out had floored her on sight was an understatement. She had to sit down before he convinced her to simply allow herself to touch it! Then another female attendant had come by to help her put it on at that, invited along by the small gnomish man.

It was a splendid snow white dress with ornate silver trim and hints of stand-out gold around the torso that seemed fit for a noble gala or royal vista. Certainly grand and very magestic to be sure, and it even had a small train to boot! It had arm-length gloves that went up to nearly her shoulders, and smooth snow white leggings with silver trim to match alongside a pair of gold-imbued dress shoes to adorn her feet. To boot, it came with a pair of silver sapphire-embedded earrings shaped like diamonds, and a small tiara embedded with a small array of sapphires and ornate metalwork that was beyond anything she could think human hands were capable of on their own back home.

Simply looking in the mirror in this full attire she'd felt, perhaps for the first time in greater earnest, utterly overwhelmed and like a...well....a real, hoenst-to-goodness princess. Like she had arrived in a fairytale carriage, a royal escort, and all the bells and whilstles that some girls had perhaps dreamed of more so than herself. Yet even then, simply seeing herself looking so well made her feel a heat in her face and especially around her eyes. Like she was nearly going to cry, really, before the small gnome walked over to her as she sat afterward and put a gentle if not grandfatherly hand on her left shoulder.

"It's ok. Just let it out. I've been looking to have someone try this piece for quite a while, and I must say you compliment it the best I've seen yet in my line of work! Like you were made for it....my oh my, thinking about it is making my face feel so very flush with heat! It is as if you made made for it, my dear!

But, of course, I know an adventurer only has so much of a budget....so of course I will not pressure you. Still, you've made an old gnome proud of this work enough to cry tears of pure joy. I feel I'm entitled to that much at least, once in a while, for an old designer like myself."

The gnome chuckled a bit as he wiped away a tear or two, and she couldn't help but join in a little soft chucking herself before the two took a few deep breaths to calm down again. As it turned out, and the gnome had told her after she would get some help changing out of the attire, he was a designer and had been at the store for many a year. Apprenticed in a small village in the Empire under a local tailor, and from there had managed to make his way through a personal 'traveling tailor' streak before landing in Valheim nearly burnt out. From there he'd worked on many a design and idea, before the prior owner (mother of the current one to boot) of this particular store had seen him out one day sketching while sitting on a bench. From there? From there he'd gone up to levels he could never have imagined, helping train clerks and others wor work with cloth and so forth. Works that had seen the grandest of balls, all the way down to the humblest of city marriages, had been through his hands since then, though the latter had admittedly been more of a personal hobby and work on the side still.

After delving into his story, however, it was at this point that Addelsby let her return to her compatriots and to take the already-present female attendant who had assited her with the much fancier dress. It was also at this point that the slightly less-nervous mage would clam back up as she went about to look at certain things. Not all of them things she was used to shopping for this fancy either, really, as things such as more 'daring' bits came up here and there as she experimented and tried them on to try to get an idea. It would involve much blushing along the way, admittedly, though in the end she would actually settle on a few humble things to buy.

Yet once the attendants perked up at her being a magic user, mostly as she was asked some general questions, the attendant directed her to some other magic-user-befitting clothes that could help her use magic while in them. These, as she'd seen were certianly something with their own flair for 'the high class mage' as it were. Not that she....well maybe such a thing could be nicer too, right? In that vein she would see a few things to try them, and then be turned back into the hands of the other attendant helping MacKensie and Fenna as well as the one assisting her got pulled away to help some other customers.

Ultimately, it would lead to the mage feeling a bit special in a sense. Even if it was in a store way out of her league in many ways. Though as she stood in front of the mirror once more, Lillianna would be donning perhaps the last of the outfits she'd been envouraged to try by this attendant in particular. A nice knee-length black skirt with a small gold and silver trim, and a white blouse with short sleeves and some gold trim that felt comfortable and came with a small black jacket with longer sleeves of similar color to the skirt (just in case in got cold) that had a few gold hints about it to match the skirt and compliment the blouse it seemed.

"Lillianna, you look fabulous!"

MacKensie had already bought an outfit and had it bagged but she was now trying on a beautiful olive tunic that showed off her neck and shoulders. The satin olive garb was embroidered with an elegant gold pattern across the top and hung down to her hips, tightened by a black sash-belt at her waist. The outfit was finished off with black pants and knee-high boots.

"I will wear this out of the shop, thank you," she told the assistant, who graciously bagged up her Ranger gear for her. "Fenna, have you decided on anything yet?" MacKensie asked, a flute of champagne in her hand. She gave herself one last look in the mirror, then went to sit down.

"Y-You mean it?"

...Well, it wasn't on the more expensive end of things, and so the mage would take pause a bit before caving and asking to get it as well alongside her other purchases from the store.

It would be a second casual outfit with some magic-conducing functionality, one of two in total she would have purchased on their shopping spree thus far. That would mean in total she had purchased two not overly fancy, and importantly cheap enough despite her finances, casual outfits. This one with the black skirt and white blouse with an optional jacket, and another that had a mostly backless (but not too low cut mind) darker blue blouse with silvery-light-gray shorts, a pair of pants to go with the second casual outfit she'd bought prior. There was also a long-sleeved shirt, four sets of additional underwear (most made to be able to adventure in, including whatever she'd arrived in at least), several pairs of thigh-length socks for both protecting her legs and keeping comfortable during travel or causal affairs alike, one pair of good boots for traveling and casual winter occasions, one pair of shoes she was going to put on alongside a pair of the socks she'd bought already that seemed to go well with the blouse and skirt, and a silky soft and comfortable nightgown for sleeping in when not out adventuring.

"Almost," Fenna said to MacKensie as she compared two skirts of a fabric resembling cotton. She smiled when she glanced towards her female companion and how comfortable she was in the shop. Then she turned to find Lilliana to see how she was doing.

Going with the theme of her earlier purchases, she settled for a dark green long-sleeved vest made of a velvet-like material with gold buttons, and a matching ankle-long skirt with some golden embroidery along the edges. The shop assistant assured her the material was crease-friendly, so it would be suitable to be transported in a bag like most adventurers carried.

She examined herself in the mirror and nodded to herself, this outfit would do. "I think I will carry this out of the shop as well," she decided. "Is it possible to have my armour sent to the inn I stay?"

The shop assistant told her that was possible as she could fetch an errand boy or girl to do that and went ahead to ask MacKensie and Lillina if they too wished for their current clothes to be brought to the inn.

Without the weight of her leather armour, that was a constant reminder of the situation they were in, she started to relax more. She accepted the bubbly drink when it was offered and sipped from it. Not quite the same as real French champagne, but it was close enough.

Once Lilliana was ready they would set out again, but for now Fenna enjoyed the moment of soft cushions to sit in while sipping her drink.

After getting it organized to have her things safely sent back to her room at the Mending Drum Inn, though she did admittedly worry about that a bit, the mage felt comfortable about how much she'd spent on the matter of clothing. However, she would admittedly keep on her current casual outfit and have her mage attire sent back to the inn as well. Better to break things in while she had the chance, after all, and while they had a moment to rest. It had been a decent bit to spend on clothes, but given her situation she'd worked to budget the whole affair with regards to herself....which had included a lot of quick mental maths and calculations to optimize her efficiency in it all really. Of course she didn't mind using the showers at the inn, which were functional and kept clean enough, and didn't really get anything else as she wanted to save plenty of money for food, mundane supplies, and most importantly anything she needed to spend for magically-related items or supplies and such otherwise in the future.

In short, the mage had spent a fair bit without trying to hyper penny-pinch, but had saved a greater bit of remaining cash to sort out other things.

In contrast to the other two, however, the mage would not really take up any of the offered drinks in this particular high-end shop. Whether it was habit or a lack of desire for something at the time or whatever was mostly left to her quiet discretions, though the mage would sit next to Fenna before letting out a small and soft yet self-admittedly mentally-tired sigh. Because, as it were, shopping was quite exhausting to her like this. Where MacKensie got the super-fashionista-energy from was beyond even her mind to be able to fathom, and perhaps was well beyond the reckoning of any divinity here unless there was a 'god or goddess of shopping' somewhere out there.

Take Vor, Baphomet.

Zell walked the streets of Valhiem with his new custom-tailoired scabbard keeping the black katana firmly fixed on his back. Three dark brown leather straps, over the shoulder, under the arm and around the other side of his torso met in the center of his chest where an adjustable buckle made the scabbard easy to adorn and take off. Without the rest of his armour pieces, it was easily visable over his white shirt, and the hilt of the sword peeked menacingly over his right shoulder, ready to be drawn in a flash.

Speaking of flash...

He whispered, "Teleport," as he tried to activate his ability again, attempting to apply Adam's lessons. No success.

He hadn't bothered buying a shield. It turned out that there was a perfect one in store for him - an enchanted buckler that was capable of blocking magical attacks - but it was too expensive. He would have to either borrow money from a comrade or wait to get his share of the next reward once they'd taken care of this wraith in the temple of Hades. After seeing the enchanted buckler, the rest of the shields paled in comparison, so he decided to revisit Gildor Hammerfist at a later date.

At this moment, he was simply taking a walk into the east side of Valhiem. There were two spots on the map that piqued his interest. A place labelled The Nightingale and another labelled The Brass Monkey. The latter sounded like a tavern name, for sure, but he was still interested in checking out both.

As he walked directly down the main street from The Bazaar, he could see what was the city park on his right, so he knew he should come across The Nightingale soon enough. He would check it out briefly before taking a left at the intersection beyond the place, then head north up to The Brass Monkey.

@xenon

The kettle whistled, glowing bright on the stove, releasing a big burst of steam from the spout. Barracker rose out of his chair. “Mother, I will get that for you. One sugar as normal.” He took a cup of chamomile tea to Anne. The elf had three centuries under her belt, this was even old for an elf. She was starting to get ill a lot. Some shakes and the occasional fever would take her. She was very short for an elf, age had shrunk and curled her back with it. But her big heart could never be shrunk. “Your looking well today Mother”.

She smiled at him as he took a seat. Barracker was not the only orphan that called Anne, mother. Indeed many did, her kindness and care invited such a title, which was well earned by the loving elf. Anne placed her hand on Barrackers and with her other hand she pulled out an envelope. “My dear boy, her words grip me, she weeps for you.”

Barracker’s face tensed with an uneasiness. Not good with words, he chuckled with genuine love and a loss for words. “Mother… Will you please stop reading my letters.” She let out a guilty laugh. “I’m surprised she wrote so soon.”

“Capitol city is very far from everything she knows.”

Barracker understood and was just glad she kept in touch. “Areleth has given me an opportunity to join an adventurer party.” Barracker thought for a second. “Actually, he didn’t give me an opportunity… He sort of just made me. I do not know why. A chance to find myself, you could say.”

Anne gave a nod in agreement, “Ahh, yes that Areleth is very wise, he is. You deserve to stretch your wings boy… And heal that heart of yours too.”

His face narrowed with a sadness. “I’ve been accepted into the party. They call themselves ‘Second Chance’.”

She raised her arms out. “Give your mother a hug, then”. Barracker rose and shuffled round the table to give her a tight hug. “Your crushing me dear boy, you don’t know your strength.”

Barracker quickly eased off, worried at first but smiled when the elderly elf was laughing. He sat back down and continued the topic. “My first contract is the temple of Hades, the hallowed ground has been corrupted, but after that I do not know how far my duties will take me.”

He told her about James, his now party leader, who had made a good first impression towards being a worthy leader. Then they talked about new arrivals at the orphanage, refugees of war, and numerous topics before Barracker was ready to leave. “I will see you when I can.”



Barracker found himself in ‘Golden Tree Park.’ He found the nearest bench and took a seat, reading his letter from Evelyne. This would lift his spirits before visiting ‘The Mended Drum’ and meeting James and his other party members. He wasn't great in social situations. Fighting the fiercest monsters was nothing compared to being in a large group of people where casual conversation was expected.

When the shop assistant offered to have their clothes taken to the inn, MacKensie accepted the offer with gratitude. She gave over the bags with her ranger gear and the ditsy floral sundress she'd purchased earlier. Why on earth she'd bought a sundress when her future seemed filled with nothing but fighting, she did not know. It was nice so she bought it. "Thank you so much."

As Fenna came to sit down, MacKensie scanned her from head to toe with a look of extreme approval. "Ma Soeur, you are positively divine," she told the woman. The dark green she'd chosen matched so well with her hair and skin - a very earthy theme that she carried so well and looked so comfortable in. The older woman would likely look good in anything, in all honesty - she was beautiful - but MacKensie thought that her friend's choices suited her well. She respected a woman who knew her own style. "I am so very jealous of your lips, Fenna," she complimented the other Ranger. "I inherited my father's," she chuckled.

She made the motion of toasting her glass, then sipped her bubbly as Fenna did. While they waited for Lillianna, watching the wizard make her final decision, MacKensie continued to get even more comfortable, leaning back on her free hand and crossing her legs. "My my, the decor of this place is amazing," she said with a brief look around. "Look at those coloumns. And that fountain is beautiful." She could have gotten all nerdy and started to debate wether or not the quarter coloumns in the walls resembled Doric or Tuscan order style, but repressed her desire to get deep into that kind of conversation for fear of boring Fenna. Architecture was not for everyone, but complimenting beauty was enjoyable enough for most. "Paris has some lavish shops, but this is quite beyond anything I've ever seen. I am sure Holland must have some great places to shop."

She talked with Fenna about frivolous things, relaxed into that unserious side of herself that often broke out in small gaps of the busy schedule of her previous life; when she could be in non-formal social situations with her friends. It was a rare moment. As the oldest child of the Trydant family - heiress to the fortune - MacKensie was required to grow up fast, be responsible, proper and approach all things in her life - social, academic and extra-curricular - with seriousness, determination and perfectionism. She had to live up to her parents. And she embraced it with honour, pride and positivity. But it was still nice to have those hours where she could just let her hair down with her friends. Usually these hours were when she was shopping. And so Fenna and Lillianna were now privy to this facet of her personality.

When Lillianna was ready, MacKensie noticed her sigh tiredly, no drink in her hand and quiet as usual. The frenchwoman's lips pursed in a smile of pity for the wizard and she quickly threw out plans to find more places to window-shop. Instead MacKensie decided she would suggest something to eat or even offer the idea of heading back to the The Mended Drum for a rest. As much fun as she was having, she would not neglect the shy woman. She also remembered that Lillianna had somehwere in particular that she wanted to go before the day was out, although she hadn't given any details.

As they left the clothes shop, MacKensie was still holding the bags that had her other things she bought at other shops and stalls. It occured to her that she could have had all of her bags sent back with her outfits, but that opportunity had passed. "Well," she said brightly as she twirled around to face her friends, somewhat flexing her new outfit, happy to be out of the ranger gear for a while. "Where shall we go next? Some food, or back to the inn for some rest? Perhaps we can visit the place you wanted to go, Lillianna?" She couldn't help but leave the option out there for more exploring. "I'm still open to more exploring if you have it in you," she said in a playful challenge, arching an eyebrow.

The Southeastern quadrant of the city was the richest area in Valhiem, (or at least, within the walls,) home to the upper-middle class, with well-patrolled and often-cleaned streets. Golden Tree Park was the centerpiece of the area, bordered by Beam Street North, Beam Street East, West and South. Zell was walking along Beam Street North towards the main intersection of the area.

The Nightingale sat on this intersection and was the most famous and exclusive restaurant, bar and function room establishment in Valhiem. Any notable social event or party that did not take place in the grand halls of The Citadel, most likely were taking place at The Nightingale.

Outside, Zell would see a garden of pretty colours, perfectly trimmed hedgerows, protected by fancy iron-railing fence and staff that were better dressed than most citizens in the city. So well dressed they were that it was hard to tell who were servers, greeters or security until they spoke to you. Clean, white stone steps led up to the garden and made pathways throughout, and all-together, the outside area had two levels above the street entrance. The building itself was an angular design of grand proportions and inside was a magnificent feast for the eyes. Musicians played, as they did in many establishments, but here only the finest violinists, strings and pianos played, with music resembling the classical music of earth. And too the finest chefs and servers in Mytheria could secure employment here. Enchanting lighting, statues, a dance floor, bar, with several fine dining areas within and without that made one feel as though they were the classiest man or woman on the mortal plane.

This was The Nightingale.

And like most major cities in this world and the last, one only had to walk 30 mins in the right direction to find themselves going from one class of neighbourhood into a different one.

The Northeastern quadrant of Valhiem was a mix of working and lower-middle class residence. The Brass Monkey was a notable tavern and gambling house in the area. It was not quite so famous, but not because it couldn't be. It was well known to be the headquarters of the private company; Dent, Dent and Farley. AKA The Thieves Guild. Everyone who knew, knew. Even the law was not ignorant to this fact. But The Thieves Guild had ways of co-existing with the rest of the city. Their contribution to the economy, the welfare of the city, their connection and expertise in the Adventurer Classes in and around the Ranger and Rogue class. Said expertise aiding and abetting their evasive crimes making them nigh untouchable when combined with their political connections and shadowy, inscrutible membership. The Thieves Guild could not be dismantled.

The Brass Monkey was a relatively big and clean establishment, when not compared to upper class standards. But even as you neared the front entrance and yard, it started to become clear what kind of place this was and what kind of people frequented it. Here among the patrons were men who liked dark clothing or hooded cloaks, tattoos or scars, carried weapons or huge hulking muscle. Adventurers of the less pure persuasion also liked the place, in addition to Rangers and Rogues who came to learn more or use the massive practice facilities in the training grounds behind the place.

As Zell got closer, a man who was dressed much like a stereotypical pirate of all things, with a teardrop inked on his cheek amongst other tattoos, would raise his chin to mean-mug the englishman.

"Oi," he called out with a voice like gravel. "The fuck you looking at, baby-face?"

Zell eyed The Brass Monkey, taking note of the underworld-vibe of the place. Having seen enough for now, he was about to turn around and walk off, when he heard the call-out from the man in the front yard.

"Mind your own fucking business, pal," he said back, sticking his chest out a little.

A few pairs of eyes were drawn to the altercation, particularly to Zell who was the outsider in the situation. And now the Englishman didn't want to walk away for fear of looking scared.

Ugh, this is so annoying, he thought as he paused, then was compelled to walk into the yard and up to the entrance. As he passed the thug who was mean-mugging him, he kept eye contact just long enough to show he wasn't at all afraid, and also just long enough to notice that the thug's eyes briefly flicked down to Zell's left hand. Yeah, I've got superpowers you retard, try something.

Inside, the atmosphere was rough and rowdy, with gambling of all kinds at many different tables, drinks aplenty, and various degrees of tension in different areas of the room. Zell was no stranger to this kind of place, but he much preferred the vibe at places like The Mended Drum. Happy drunks were much more fun to be around. (They also spent more money on drugs, which had always been a nice bonus.)

At the bar he ordered a non-alcoholic beverage and decided he'd stick around for ten minutes before leaving to continue his city tour. It wasn't a bad idea to come inside and take note of the place, anyway. Who knew what the future would bring? Perhaps he would need to delve into the other side of the law, for whatever reason. (He may have already began flirting with contraband, with his new weapon.) Zell was never one to shy away from trouble.

"Excuse me miss," he said loudly, grabbing the attention of a serving lady. She was a buxom woman, with a face unperturbed by the flavour of patron around her. In fact, her air suggested she was more than willing to break up a fight, or spit venom back at anyone giving her a hard time. Zell gave her some silver. "Would you do me a kindness and take a beer out to the gentlemen at the middle table on the right, in the yard?" She checked the money in her hand. "And a drink for your yourself, darlin." Unmoved by the gesture of good will, she simply nodded. "He's wearing a red bandana. Got a teardrop tattoo on his cheek. Do me a favour and tell him; 'Baby-face sends his regards.'"

She repeated the description, the message and nodded before heading to the bar, then went outside. When she returned, she gave Zell a thumbs up from across the room, then went on to other duties. Satisfied, Zell nursed his drink for a while before deciding he'd lingered enough, downed the rest of it and left the building.

Outside, he passed by the tables without a word but was stopped by that same gravelly voice.

"Had enough already, have ye, baby-face?"

His back still to the man, Zell smiled, then he turned about to walk over to the table. "Just passing through to see a man about a dog."

"Is that what the kids call it these days?" was a third man, which got a laugh from everyone including Zell.

"You're no local," the teardrop-tattoo man inquired.

"I'm about as un-fucking-local as it gets, pal," Zell replied. "How about you?"

"Born a ways down south. Followed the money and found meself in Valhiem. I'm guessing you don't want my whole fucking biography."

"You wouldn't be worth writing about, you ugly bastard," Zell bounced back. Again, all three laughed. The Englishman nodded pointedly at the tattoos. "Decent ink you've got there. You've got an artist who knows what he's doin."

"Me and a mate of mine did eachother. Why? You planning on marking yourself up?"

"And ruin this pretty face?" Zell rubbed a finger down his jawline. "Not a chance. But I might have a friend whose interested."

"No need to ask if you've got the coin. You adventurers are usually good for it."

Zell smirked. "We've either got money or we're dead."

"Sounds like my line of work."

It didn't take much imagination to speculate on what kind of work that might be. Nothing nice, to be sure. The swordsman decided to leave it at that. "Well alright then." He walked away a bit before stopping and turning about once more. "Didn't catch your name."

"I didn't fucking throw it," was the reply. The man enjoyed his joke for a moment then answered. "Devon."

"Zell Brooks."

"Baby-face," Devon corrected.

Zell didn't fight it, simply saluting and walking off, back south down the street. Devon. He'd made a potential contact into whatever underworld there was in Valhiem, and that may or may not be useful at a later time.

...

After walking all the way back down the long road to the intersection, another look at the grand establishment that was The Nightingale suddenly gave him a fantastic idea.

"Ha," he said aloud to himself as he passed it. "Perfect."

He stored the idea in the files of his mind. No need to rush that one. An opportunity would present itself at some point, he was sure.

His stroll took him into Golden Tree Park where he enjoyed the tranquility of the environment. Children played, people walked their dogs... this world was eerily similar to his own world. Aside from the aesthetic, of course the magic, and the various talking creatures that lived alongside humans, it really wasn't that different at all, in the big city. People remained quite the same, and that fact would help Zell see something of a possible future for himself, in this world, if he was indeed stuck here. He'd just need to learn this adventuring business, see this Witch Queen defeated and he'd be confident in settling down and adjusting to his new life. Even becoming a success.

After nearly making a full lap around the park, he ended up going over to a bench, one hand unbuckling the sword straps at his chest to unequip his weapon and sit down. There was someone else at the other end of the bench, and Zell looked around contentedly before regarding the man sidelong. His smile didn't waver as he noted the appearance of the other man, nor did he fail to notice the HUGE greatsword and tower shield leaning next to him. At this point, freaky looking people had already lost their novelty. He battled with a metal ninja, seen Aurok the Maneater close up. Hell, he'd been patched up at Valhiem's hospital who looked like a cartoon devil come to life. The only thing particularly eyebrow-raising was just how fucking cool the man's leather armour was. It had a hood and everything.

This other man was reading a letter with a look of dreamy romance on his face. As if he was off somewhere else, floating on Cloud Nine.

"I know that look," Zell said. He shook his head. "That's the look of a man in love. So familiar. Seen it in friends, of course. Not me. I don't love these girls," he stated proudly, looking away briefly as a rapid-fire montage of beautiful women's faces flickered through his mind. But it ended abruptly with one woman's face who stayed firmly in his mind's eye, and the Englishman's tone changed. "Well... that might be up for debate as of recently, but never mind that." Getting back on track. "The point is: I know that look all too well."

Zell's welcoming smile and particular brand of charm had a certain way of getting people to open up and talk to him, strangers and associates alike. Whether it would work on the demonic looking man at the other end of the bench, was yet to be determined. Zell nodded pointedly at the letter.

"What's she like?"

@Jay009

Sheesh, talk about a bad reaction.

For a moment he stopped being James Sirus, Leader of Second Chance and newly appointed Cleric and returned to being James Sirius, Employee Relation Manager for a company that cared too little sometimes.

He had anticipated an arrangement of reactions from Adam to his invitation, some more unlikely than others but the apprehension he was showing was... Well it was not exactly unexpected but it certainly was not what he was hoping for, it had taken him a few days but he could say he had identified the basics of the personalities of his party members, Zell was a loud mouth idiot that was way smarter than he let on, Mac was honest to a fault and tried to be as inclusive as possible, Joji was direct in a way he could apreciate, not simple just really focused on what he held in high regard, Lilly was curious and awkward in equal measure (and his opinion wasn't biased in any way by their interactions, no sire!) but dangerous when pushed to a corner, he could not say much about Barracker having only met him but he felt like he was as calm as a mountain even if the man felt somewhat lonely, and finally, Fenna was the only one he still had not talked to but from what he had observed she was the most determinated of them all, he had not missed the way her eyes looked whenever they were on the topic of going back to their own world.

But coming back to Adam, the younger man was the textbook image of a capable but self-doubting employee, he kept contributing to the figths and even made some connections with the other members of the party but a single point of failure had shaken his confidence in his position inside the team, granted it was both, a great failure and not his direct fault (or any member of Second Chance's for that matter) but his personality forced him to see it as a personal falling that he could not accept, if he dared to make a careless guess he would say that the way everyone else seemed to act guilt free probably subconsciously reinforced Adam's own belief of defeat in a self-image harming loop. The way to deal with such an employee from an HR perspective would be to influence them with direct and subtle tactics, assuring them of their capabilities and place in the company while also discreetly exchanging their duties for similar but easier ones in order to make them regain their self-confidence. If the problem persisted or worsened more drastic measures would be taken depending on the severity, one of the most extreme ones being the termination of their contract.

The Cleric scooped some eggs into his mouth and bit down on some bread.

Even if this continued he wouldn't just tell Adam to fuck off for practical, moral, personal, and common sense reasons, but this was something he should address now when they were in a safe town and not on the mission they had foolhardily agreed on in the passion of the moment. (He suppressed the shudder at his eloquent talking, HR James could go fuck himself with his fancy words).

Finishing shallowing he decided to use the soft-blunt approach "Hey Adam, did you know that I used to work in HR for a time? You met all kinds of wacky characters when working with so many people, there was this one time that I had to talk to one of them because they keep taking 30-minute bathroom breaks, apparently they used their cellphone to watch Dragon Ball episodes while in the bathroom 3 to 4 time per day" He snorted "Only reason we know it was Dragon Ball was because they forgot to disconnect from the loudspeaker someone else brought that day" he chuckled a little.

He gave a soft sigh and leaned forward "Other times however, people came to us because they had important problems, either at home they needed to take care of but didn't want to go to their direct superior or in really serious cases because they messed up in big ways and were fearing the consequences" He relaxed his posture as best as he could "What I am trying to say is that I can recognize when someone has something on their minds that is bringing them down" A breath "Adam, I say this as a friend and as the leader of the party, whatever you are thinking about your own status in the party is way worse than it actually is, I would ask you to trust me when I say that you are a valuable member of Second Chance who has shown their reliability time and time again, what happened recently was outside our control and none of us had a way to resolve the situation at the time" Another pause then he tried to give a smile "But I know that the heart feels what it believes it has to feel so I will instead just ask you to keep with us, regardless of what you may think we feel about you we like you quite a bit Adam, and often go out of our way to spend time with you"

Adam's food arrived and another spoon full of egg found itself in his mouth.

"Case in question my day was great thanks for asking, went to the guild and signed some papers, met someone that ended up joined the party -Great guy- and then came here to eat something, how was yours?"

Adam had expected the worst. He expected to be yelled at, kicked off the team, and sent packing before he could even finish his lunch. What happened instead was quite different. Instead, James started telling the younger man about his life in HR. When he mentioned the guy watching Dragon Ball in the bathroom, Adam couldn't help but laugh a little.

"That sounds like something my brother would do," the Druid responded after that. Eric did have a habit of hiding to avoid chores when he was younger. Adam let the Cleric continue talking after this, listening intently as he proceeded to try reassuring the red-eyed man of his place on the team. The logic did make sense, but he'd be lying to himself if he said he didn't still feel somewhat guilty over the events of yesterday. Still, James was the leader and nobody had confronted the Druid yet, so it was fair to at least try moving forward.

"That is appreciated, I will do that" was the simple yet sincere reply Adam gave to the Cleric's request as the former's food arrived. Deciding to start with the eggs, the Druid ate a little as James described his day. A new team member was a good idea; they had lost two people (thanks to himself, Adam felt) and someone who could work together with everyone was welcome. Swallowing his food, the red-eyed man answered the question he was asked.

"Kind of eventful. I went to the library for books and met a new friend who taught me some things. Then I came here to drop off most of the books. And here I am." The Druid decided to skip talking about his trip up the mountain, thinking James might misinterpret the intent. There would be time to mention it to someone on the team later anyway. Right now though, it was time for something he had been meaning to do since the group's first battle together.

"Oh, I've been meaning to thank you for your spell back in Hommas with the ogres. One hit me pretty hard and I might have died if that wasn't there. So, well…thank you." It didn't feel eloquent to him, but Adam was glad to have said it.

The mage didn't so much as notice the Frenchwoman's reaction to her own tiredness and exasperation, though for the most part the mage's mood would seem to change as they finally left the clothing store. Relief, as visible as it was while she only somewhat tried to hide it, would take over the mage's expression as they began to make their way toward the exit. Relief at finally getting some fresh air, relief at leaving the airs of the so overly-fancy store that had spooked her, and yet-

"Ah! Leaving already?"

Addelsby would walk over with his quick little steps, briefly interrupt Lillianna on her way out as the mage's head turned to look at him one more time. His tone, almost slightly teasing, would come alongside a small smile and a seeming understanding in his eyes. In fact the old gnome seemed to have some sort of grandfatherly twinkle in his eyes if one looked closer, though it was enough to at least elicit a small smile in return from the usually shy mage.

"Yes....but p-perhaps we'll be back one day."

With a small chuckle, the designer would give a silent nod to the mage, then to MacKensie, and to Fenna in turn, before turning around and disappearing into the cutrain call of the back rooms of the shop once more.

After finally getting outside, the mage clutched her staff in her right hand as they walked along. Its light tap on the ground as she walked with it was faint, at least compared to the hustle and bustle of people and daily traffic moving around them, but at the same time almost comforting to the mage. It was the one part of her mage attire and such that she hadn't sent back to the Mended Drum at that. Likewise she felt somewhat glad she'd gotten the, admittedly likely overburnened by now, help from this latest store to carry the rest of her things back as well to free up her arms.

She wasn't physically unfit right now, but for some reason shopping like this seemed well out of her area of expertise if nothing else. Draining in its own fashion, really, a fact she felt in her mind and in her bones. Even so she'd have to get back on her exersize later, and she would do so some time before going to bed at least, and then get her morning routine back into...well...a proper routine again if she wanted to stay physically fit enough. Maybe find a place to swim if there was any around here-....drat, she needed a swimsuit in such a case then. Perhaps before the end of the day they could make one last little-

As they left the clothes shop, MacKensie was still holding the bags that had her other things she bought at other shops and stalls. It occured to her that she could have had all of her bags sent back with her outfits, but that opportunity had passed. "Well," she said brightly as she twirled around to face her friends, somewhat flexing her new outfit, happy to be out of the ranger gear for a while. "Where shall we go next? Some food, or back to the inn for some rest? Perhaps we can visit the place you wanted to go, Lillianna?" She couldn't help but leave the option out there for more exploring. "I'm still open to more exploring if you have it in you," she said in a playful challenge, arching an eyebrow.

-...ah. Ah! Yes, that was right! She hadn't forgotten one bit about wanting to go to the Church of Iris, but at the same time it was certainly one part of a growing list of things she was taking note of in her head. Or, well, list of things she had been taking note of by now at any rate. But at the mere mention of what she'd said before, the mage perked up with a little more energy before responding to MacKensie.

"Well, it isn't as grand as the shopping we've done...but I did wish to go to the Church of Iris here in Valheim. Something about that spirit that assisted us back in the maze, the one that spoke with me, seems to have stuck with me a bit. I was hoping to try to learn a bit more about him there, since he told me his sister had been trained as a cleric I believe."

Her voice seemed to drift off a little as she finished speaking, admittedly a bit nervous about her request though very much honest in what she'd said as well. The unfortunate adventurer who had died out there in the Mazy Hillocks, without whom they'd have been ambushed that much worse in a situation that had gone even further beyond that by the end of it all. He'd also saved her though a well-placed...poltergeist-ing? Er, that is what she called the event in her mind right now anyway. Somehow helped kill a wolf that was trying to get at her throat, basically, but it took a lot out of him from the looks and sounds of it.

That had been the last she'd seen of him before the flurry of events took her out of comission. Nearly made her another spirit bound to the area, perhaps, though the thought made her shudder unconcsiously at the potential that their dead comrades could have been sent to such a fate themselves. Hopefully they hadn't the grudges or such to stick around haunting a place like that.

Still, in the end she was glad Lucy had directed her toward the Church of Iris for further questions. Maybe there would be answers at the end of it all, she hoped, that might put her mind better at ease or the like.

Fenna smiled when MacKenzie praised her looks, although she wasn't sure how to respond to the praise on her lips. Were they really that special? She'd take the woman's word for it. "You look stunning yourself," she returned the compliment. "I'm certain you'll get a lot of attention when we leave this place."
She agreed the place looked gorgeous, the Academy had likewise impressive architecture. The people living here took pride in their building, when they had the funds to do so, and it showed. Which wasn't unlike back home. It made it easier being here, even though they were somewhere far away, there were enough similarities to get a familiar feeling.
When MacKensie mentioned shopping in Holland she smiled. "I haven't shopped in Holland very often," she said. "I live in a different part of the Netherlands. No place is as grand as Paris though, but we do have some nice places."
The small talk was pleasant and Fenna was happy for this opportunity to just sit back and relax for a moment.

Once Lilliana was ready and they left the clothes shop, they discussed the next destination and when she mentioned the Church of Isis, Fenna nodded in agreement. "Alright, let's go there next."

As they went to their next destination, asking for directions when they weren't sure where to go, Fenna noticed the mage shudder while being deep in thought. "Are you okay?" she asked Lilliana.

Barracker’s mind flooded with thoughts. Soft embraces and warm cuddles. He could not help but picture the two of them having afternoons in ‘Golden Tree Park’.

He was glad Evelyne seemed to be getting settled, well enough in Capitol city. Moving to another city can be tough but Evelyne was smart and likeable so it was likely she would be fine. But that wouldn’t stop Barracker worrying about her, so it was relieving to read in her own words that she was doing good. Furthermore to add the good news Krillen had arrived in Capitol city, giving her someone she knew from Valhiem.

Barracker smiled. His best friend Krillen, who saved up enough money through his bare-knuckle fighting, wanted to journey around the country. So Barracker had made him promise to drop by and make sure Evelyne felt well and had some company from time to time. Old faces to ease her home sickness.

A stranger came into view and took a seat on the other end of the bench, while the paladin was reading the letter a second time.

"I know that look."

Barracker eyes flickered over to meet the strangers gaze.

"That's the look of a man in love. So familiar. Seen it in friends, of course. Not me. I don't love these girls."

“Is that so?” Barracker shot back in a friendly manner.

He lost himself for a moment while giddy with flowery thoughts about his love. It was unlike himself to casually shoot a smile at strangers. Strangers weren’t usually showing interest in Barracker’s business, rather than showing disgust or fear. Barracker’s demeanour tried to go back to guarded and wary, but the man’s proud statement about never being in love reminded him of his best friend, Krillen, who was forever breaking hearts back in the day.

“Well... that might be up for debate as of recently, but never mind that."

"The point is: I know that look all too well."

Even the cocky way he talked sounded just like Krillen.

"What's she like?"

Barracker sighed and looked out into the distance of the park as he searched for the right words to explain. The luxury of getting these words out aloud, never having to see this man again, was something he was in the right mood to take advantage of.

“Care-giving, a pure heart which could melt anyone’s heart. She has a loving soul with emerald eyes that could light up anyone’s world. She’s the kind of girl who makes you…”

Barracker stops himself realising he would take up the next hour of this stranger’s life. His thoughts stayed on Evelyne for a moment and then he looked at the stranger.

“What about you? You said love is up for debate, as of recently. Tell me about her, if you don’t mind.”

As the stranger sighed in response to his question, Zell smiled and rested an arm on the back of a bench. The things a woman can make a man feel, eh, he thought as he waited patiently for the other man to find the words his heart was looking for, enjoying the meaningful silence, and the fact that even such a scary-looking individual could be captured by the power of love. It was both heart-warming and hilarious to the ex-frat boy.

When words finally came, they were beautiful. Zell nodded slowly, the smile never leaving his face, and while he was in the moment with the stranger, listening intently to the description of the woman in the letter, it was another woman who was clear in Zell's mind.

“...She’s the kind of girl who makes you…”

"...makes you want to be a better man," Zell finished quietly and confidently.

They shared a warm silence for a moment and Zell looked out onto the park. It was only a short description the man had given, and it was clear by the tone that his feelings towards this woman were far more advanced and developed than Zell's own were for the woman on his mind. But nevertheless, he felt a kinship to this stranger, simply for being on the same page. Whoever this stranger was, the first thing out of his mouth was 'caring-giving' and 'pure heart' - he'd chosen these words, exposing his own values - and that alone demanded respect, as a man. Zell could relate - as strange as it might sound from the shallow, foolhardy Englishman. University had been full of beautiful women, smart women, talented or popular women. None had kept Zell's attention for long (granted the dumbass had a short attention span but still...)

“What about you? You said love is up for debate, as of recently. Tell me about her, if you don’t mind.”

Zell sighed, then laughed as he realised he'd perfectly mirrored Barracker's reaction to the question. He swore and shook his head, then let out another breath. "Too good for me, mate," he started. "Virtue and honour in human form. Stiff as a plank of wood," he chuckled, "but that's part of her charm. Underneath that she's steadfast, fierce, brave..."

This was too much seriousness and honesty for Zell Brooks!

"And christ; she's hotter than a furnace in a volcano," he blurted out loudly. "Slap-bang in Hell in the middle of a heatwave." He laughed at the stranger. "Bloody gorgeous." He shook his head, disappointedly and with a smile. "Fuck - look at us two, eh... hopeless. Give me Aurok the Maneater and a sword - let a simple frontliner do his job," he joked. "Speaking of swords: That's a beauty right there," he nodded at the other man's giant-ass weapon. "Claymore, right. I'd guess about ten pounds, but that looks heavier than most." He hoped the man would help change the subject and talk about his weapon in more detail, Zell was all ears. "You've gotta be packing some kinda muscle to wield that one-handed while rockin a tower shield."

If the other man was into weaponry, Zell would be happy to hand over his own for show. The scabbard of steel-banded, brown leather had a slit at the top to make for easy drawing off the back. The drow-made katana inside was of high craftmanship and just as nice to look at.

"Where are my manners," the Englishman would finally remember; "We haven't even been introduced properly. Zell Brooks," he offered a hand to shake. It took him a moment to remember that he should add. "...Of Second Chance."

"Don't mention it dude, true be told at the time I didn't even know what I was doing, I guess I was still acclimatizing or something but at the time I wasn't as good as I am now with the whole, mhm, I guess the word I want to use is 'sensing'? Or at least it's the one that feels closer to it"

He continued to eat between bites, it was good but it could have used some more spice and salt... did they use spice in their local/national cuisine? This place seemed to follow European and American customs in the clothing and building department but maybe they had some more exotic aspects to their culinary culture? But the real question was, did they use spice like he was accustomed to? Or they used the Indian approach? Or perhaps they decided they didn't want spice in their food, in which case he would have to find a supplier for personal use.

"But frankly I should be the one thanking you, if you hadn't made the skeletons flee then we would have lost a lot more people"

He still remembered those guards that decided to help him and didn't make it, as well as those in the infirmary, for a moment he spared a thought for the apprentice that helped him but then his mind caught back on what Adam had commented on his day.

"Oh? Did you find anything useful in those books you got? I managed to get a copy of a book about the theology of this place but the most we know about this place is the best" Some things were common sense enough that he had figured them out without resorting to an explanation from a local but it would be better to have confirmation nonetheless "More than anything I am interested in the customs of this place, I skimmed a little on my book and some of the beliefs in here are not things that we would usually do"

The book was mostly stories about the Deities of Mytheria with some sort of lesson attached to it -most of the time- others were just recollections of what people observed and the common beliefs, like the deities that were more likely to give you some small modicum of attention based on what you were, what you did, and what you believed in. It was also thick as hell, just skimming through the pages took him a solid hour during the night, another reason he should thank god there was coffee in this place.

And speaking of coffee "Hey Adam, shifting the conversation to a new route, I remember you growing plants on the fly, you think you could do the same with edible stuff? I was thinking about buying supplies but if you could grow things quickly it would be easier to buy seeds or something, both for cost and weight" He left out the fact that he wanted to know if he could grow Chile and Coffee, that could come later once he found someone selling some. Even if he couldn't that ability of his was the most useful of all of them, from what he had seen they all had come with something slightly unusual for their classes, like Zell's teleportation ability or his own 'Open' nature, he wasn't sure what were the others 'Gifts' but he was sure they all had something, if they learned to leverage them properly then that would be for the best, they had already lost two people and he was not ready to lose more.